By Des Erasmus
When Julius Malema appears in court on Wednesday for the first day of sentencing proceedings in his firearm discharge conviction, we will find out if a demagogue can still dress up criminal conduct as politics, or if the law will cut through the bluster.
The NPA has said that it will ask for a custodial sentence, opposing the idea that Malema can simply pay his way out with a fine.
Malema has, characteristically, amplified the drama.
He told media last week that the state is “going for the kill” and wants him to receive 15 years behind bars. In other words, the EFF leader has tried to make a legitimate prosecution look like political persecution in the eyes of his devotees.
The hearing was set down for final heads of argument and sentencing after January’s mitigation proceedings, with Magistrate Twanet Olivier saying it could run over two days
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